"We usually enjoy a beautiful environment, socializing, a cosy apartment, good restaurants, a park -- all this inspires us," says Robert Ahrends from the Institute of Analytical Chemistry of the University of Vienna and former group leader at ISAS in... Continue Reading →
Cancer cells have the ability to connect to and feed off of neurons in the brain, according to three studies published in Nature on Wednesday (September 18). The findings may explain why certain brain cancers are so difficult to treat and could... Continue Reading →
Autism spectrum disorders are a heterogeneous group of neurodevelopmental disorders, one of the main characteristics of which is impaired social communication. But what happens in patients' brains that disrupts their social skills? According to scientists from the Universities of Geneva... Continue Reading →
Our brains are famously flexible, or “plastic,” because neurons can do new things by forging new or stronger connections with other neurons. But if some connections strengthen, neuroscientists have reasoned, neurons must compensate lest they become overwhelmed with input. In... Continue Reading →
The human brain is an exquisitely complex, organic CPU, made of trillions of connections between many billions of neurons. Understanding such a complicated organ is a massive scientific undertaking, and researchers often use simplified models to uncover small pieces of... Continue Reading →
Striking electron microscope pictures from inside the brains of mice suggest what happens in our own brain every day: Our synapses – the junctions between nerve cells – grow strong and large during the stimulation of daytime, then shrink by... Continue Reading →
Scents of Science 